Dating from its inception in the late nineteenth century, political geography as a field has been heavily influenced by global events of the time. Thus, rather than trying to impose a single fashionable theory, leading geographers John Agnew and Luca Muscar consider the underlying role of changing geopolitical context as their framework for understanding the evolution of the discipline. The authors trace the development of key thinkers and theories during three distinct periods18751945, the Cold War, and the postCold Waremphasizing the ongoing struggle between theoretical monism and pluralism, or one path to knowledge versus many. The world has undergone dramatic shifts since the books first publication in 2002, and this thoroughly revised and updated second edition focuses especially on reinterpretations of the postCold War period. Agnew and Muscar explore the renewed questioning of international borders, the emergence of the Middle East and displacement of Europe as the center of global geopolitics, the rise of China and other new powers, the reappearance of environmental issues, and the development of critical geopolitics. With its deeply knowledgeable and balanced history and overview of the field, this concise work will be a valuable and flexible text for all courses in political geography.